2021 CONFERENCE PROGRAM

2021 CONFERENCE PROGRAM

THURSDAY 24 JUNE - FRIDAY 25 JUNE, 2021 BERRI HOTEL - RIVERVIEW DRIVE, BERRI, SA

Version 3.0: 17 June, 2021

Welcome to the ConferenceWe hope you have a wonderful Conference experience!On behalf of the SAAA Executive Council it gives me great pleasure to welcome you to the 2021 SAAA Conference. This is a very special conference as we are celebrating our 75th year as an Association, having been founded in August 1945.

This exciting event on the SAAA calendar, aims to bring together commercial and recreational beekeepers, researchers, suppliers, peak bodies and other industry leaders and government stakeholders to share knowledge and skills, canvas issues, explore ideas and hear about new innovative practices.

We are delighted that so many distinguished speakers have agreed to share their research, beekeeping and business stories with us during our Conference. They come from far and wide, including California, Florida, many Australian States and Territories and across South Australia. We cannot thank them enough for their time and effort.

It is terrific that the Honey Competition is back as a feature of our 2021 Conference and I would particularly like to thank our esteemed judging panel - Bruce White, Val Pope and Norm Pope for all their work in making this Honey Competition possible. I look forward to congratulating the winners!

We are also very privileged to have so many wonderful industry sponsors whose cash and in-kind support has made it possible for us to organise such a high quality, professional Conference.

I trust you will enjoy participating in the many guest presentations, workshops, conversation café, masterclasses and local industry tours, that form part of the 2021 SAAA Conference Program and I look forward to catching up with you for a chat sometime during the Conference.

Josh Kennett President, South Australian Apiarists’ Association

2


Welcome to Berri, South AustraliaIn the heart of the Riverland Berri is a charming and eventful town, with plenty of attractions on offer, and spectacular river views. Located in the heart of the Riverland, the town is an easy scenic drive to the surrounding towns of Renmark/Paringa, Barmera, Loxton, Monash and Waikerie, making it a great base for day trips.

Berri is surrounded by 3,000 hectares of irrigated vineyards and orchards and plays host to some of the largest wine production facilities in Australia, for example Berri Estates Winery and innovative boutique wineries specialising in high quality, small batch and alternative variety wines.

As a visitor to the town you can enjoy wonderful cafes, shopping, water sports, fishing, canoeing, golf and great regional produce. There are also lots of tourist attractions to visit including the Lion Allan Thurmer Recreational Trail, Martins Bend Wetlands, Berri Water Tower and Public Artworks e.g. the Berri Bridge Mural which depicts the Ngarrindjeri dreamtime story of the origins of the Murray River.

The Berri Hotel, our Conference venue, is a community-owned hotel offering a range of function rooms, dining and accommodation facilities that Conference delegates will get to enjoy, not to mention the opportunity to experience fantastic wildlife and beautiful sunrises over the river if taking an early morning walk.

No matter what your interest or passion, the township of Berri and indeed the entire Riverland region has a fantastic smorgasbord of things to see and do. Enjoy!

Welcome

3

Disclaimer Please note that while accurate at the time of publishing, this Conference Program may change due to Covid-19 Border Restrictions and other unforeseen cirumstances prior to the event.

4


THURSDAY 24 JUNE, 2021

8.00am Registrations & Coffee

9.00am Welcome & Housekeeping (Tim O’Brien Room)

9.15am Guest Presentation Welcome to Berri Peter Hunt, Mayor, Berri Barmera Council

9.25am Guest Presentation (Via Zoom) The Californian Pollination Industry and Pollen Sub-Amino Acid Ratio Research Findings Randy Oliver, Commercial Beekeeper & Researcher, Grass Valley, Northern California

9.50am Guest Presentation Beekeeping Australian Honey Products Style Lindsay Bourke, Commercial Beekeeper & Owner - Australian Honey Products, Tasmania

10.25am Guest Presentation Bee-Ing Mindful - Beekeeping and its Impact on Mental Health Marc Webb, Beekeeper, Owner - Aristaeus Farms, Gumeracha

10.55am Sponsor Presentation CMV Group

11.10am Morning Tea & Sponsor Expo Opens (Palm Court)

11.35am Panel Discussion: Theme - PIRSA Bushfire Recovery Projects Local Economic Development Program - SA Apiary Industry Projects Kelly Menadue, Program Manager, Bushfire Recovery, Department of Primary Industries and Regions (PIRSA) In Search of SA’s Unique Honey Profiles Presenter TBC What Grows Here Best for Bees? & SA Trail of Many Honeys Presenter TBC Q & A Session

12.25pm Sponsor Presentation Air CTI

12.30pm Lunch & Sponsor Expo

1.30pm Guest Presentation Draft DEW Apiary Policy Update Brett Simes, Senior Policy Officer, DEW

2.00pm Guest Presentation AHBIC Update Trevor Weatherhead AM, Chair, AHBIC Helen Goodall, CEO, AHBIC

2.35pm Workshop 1: Theme - Industry Biosecurity Issues (Balcony Bar) Small Hive Beetle Management Dr Diana Leemon, Consultant & Researcher PIRSA Biosecurity Update Michael Stedman, Program Coordinator - Apiaries, Department of Primary Industries and Regions (PIRSA) Q & A Session

Workshop 2: Industry Research (Tim O’Brien Room) Plan Bee and Honey Bee Fertility (Via Zoom) Elizabeth Frost, Technical Specialist Honey Bees, Tocal Agricultural College – NSW Department of Primary Industries Breeding for Varroa Resistance (Via Zoom) Dr Nadine Chapman, Researcher, University of Sydney Q & A Session

3.30pm Day 1 Conference Close & Afternoon Tea

4.00pm SAAA Annual General Meeting (Riverview Lounge)

6.00pm Pre-Dinner Drinks & Canapes (Balcony Bar)

6.45pm Conference Dinner (Tim O’Brien Room) Announcement of Honey Competition Winners, Raffle Draws & Auction (Hives for Heroes)

9.10am Official Welcome Josh Kennett, President, SAAA

Program

5

FRIDAY 25 JUNE, 2021

8.00am Coffee

9.00am Welcome & Housekeeping (Tim O’Brien Room)

11.40am Guest Presentation (Via Zoom) Worker Bee Tasks and the Effects of Pollination on Worker Bees Dr Jamie Ellis, Professor, University of Florida

9.45am Panel Discussion: Theme - Pollination The SA Almond Industry: Current Status & Future Growth Projections Deidre Jaensch, Industry Development Manager, Almond Board of Australia Collaboration for a Sustainable Pollination Industry Helen Smith, Consultant - Engagement Division, Department of Primary Industries and Regions Bonnie Armour, Graduate Consultant - Sustainable Agriculture Claire Dennerley, Consultant - Sustainable Agriculture Q & A Session

9.10am Guest Presentation AgriFutures Honey Bee & Pollination Panel Update Dr Diana Leemon, Member - AgriFutures Honey Bee and Pollination Panel

11.10am Morning Tea & Sponsor Expo (Palm Court)

10.45am Guest Presentation (Via Zoom) How Sweet it is - The Composition of Australian Honey Jamie Ayton, Chemist, NSW Department of Primary Industries

12.10pm Guest Presentation Journey of Bushfire Recovery: The Lessons Learned Brenton Davis, Commercial Beekeeper, Owner - Island Beehive, Kangaroo Island

12.35pm Guest Presentation B-QUAL Update Don Muir, Director - B-QUAL Australia

1.00pm Lunch & Sponsor Expo

2.00pm Guest Presentation Beekeeping in Uganda Bruce White OAM, Beekeeper, Educator & Researcher

3.00pm Workshop 3: Theme - Keeping Healthy Queens and Colonies (Tim O’Brien Room) Honey Bee Nutrition Dr Madlen Kratz, Honey Bee Development Officer, Tocal Agricultural College - NSW Department of Primary Industries Preparing for Next Queen Breeding Season Kevin Tracy, Beekeeping Lecturer Q & A Session

Workshop 4: Conversation Café (Balcony Bar) SAAA Strategic Plan Goals & Objectives Jenny McCormick, SAAA Secretary

2.40pm Afternoon Tea & Sponsor Expo

4.00pm Geoff Cotton Memorial Award Raffle Draw & Closing Remarks

4.30pm Conference Close

6

2021 POST-CONFERENCE FIELD DAY PROGRAM

SATURDAY 26 JUNE, 2021

8.30am Coffee

9.00am Welcome & Housekeeping and Introductions

9.30am Masterclass 1 Commercial Beekeeping: Best Practices and Innovation Lindsay Bourke, Commercial Beekeeper & Owner - Australian Honey Products, Tasmania Q & A Session

Masterclass 2 Building Your Beekeeping Business for Non-Commercial Beekeepers Bruce White OAM, Beekeeper, Educator & Researcher Q & A Session

VENUE: CMV FARMS - FIELKE’S LOXTON, 2195 STANITZKI ROAD, LOXTON

10.30am Coffee Break

10.45am Masterclass 3 Marketing your Queen Breeding Business Kevin Tracy, Beekeeping Lecturer & Queen Breeder Q & A Session

Masterclass 4 The Apiary Industry and AgTech: Current and Future Opportunities Leo Gaggl, Executive Director - Opensensing Q & A Session

12.00pm Host Presentation CMV Farms - Fielke’s Loxton Orchard Operations Des Gade, Farm Operations Manager

11.45am Coffee Break

12.15pm Tour of Fielke Farm

1.00pm BBQ Lunch

2.00pm Travel to Riverland Almonds 29 Starcevich Road, Loxton

2.15pm Host Presentation CMV Riverland Almonds Operations Colin Watkins, Operations Manager, Riverland Almonds

2.30pm Tour of Factory

3.00pm Closing Remarks

3.15pm Post-Conference Field Day Close

Proudly Sponsored by

Speakers

7

MAYOR PETER HUNTMarried to Ann, Peter has four adult children, nine grandchildren and lives in Barmera.Peter was first elected to Council in 1987 with the District Council of Barmera and continued until 1993 when he and his family moved to Berri and did not seek re-election. He decided to nominate as a Councillor again with the Berri Barmera Council in 2000 where he has remained. In November 2006, Peter was successful in becoming Mayor, a position that he holds with great honour and respect and will continue at least until 2022.

RANDY OLIVERRandy Oliver owns and operates a small commercial beekeeping enterprise in the foothills of Grass Valley in Northern California. He and his two sons manage around 1500 colonies for migratory pollination and produce queens, nucs, and honey. He has over 50 years of practical beekeeping experience, plus holds B.S. and M.S. degrees in Biological Sciences.Randy analyses and digests beekeeping information from all over the world, as well as performing field research of his own, in order to not only broaden his own depth of understanding and knowledge, but to develop practical solutions to many of today’s beekeeping problems, which he then shares with other beekeepers through his various articles in bee magazines, his speaking engagements worldwide, and on his website.

MARC WEBBMarc served almost 18 years in intelligence roles within the air force, including domestic operations and middle eastern deployments. After suffering an injury in Afghanistan that was the precursor to his medical discharge and subsequent diagnosis of PTSD, Marc accidentally found solace in the world of honey bees. Today he runs Aristaeus Farms with his wife and daughters, a Permaculture Farm in the Adelaide Hills where everything they do can be linked back to bees in some way. In 2021 they launched “Hives for Heroes”, a not-for-profit network linking veterans with beekeeping mentors to aid in their recovery and return to civilian life.

BRETT SIMESBrett Simes is a Senior Policy Officer in the Department for Environment and Heritage where he develops strategy and policy primarily associated with access and use of the state’s National Parks and protected area estate. Brett joined the department in 2002 after an 18 year career in retail and commercial banking. He holds a Bachelor Degree in Management from Uni SA and has worked on a wide range of strategic park management policies ranging from mountain biking and whale watching, right through to cage diving with white sharks.

BRUCE WHITE OAMBruce White started his interest in bees while still at school and was encouraged by doing a beekeeping project with Junior Farmers who had supervisors as part of the Education Department. Being in Junior Farmers also developed an interest in showing produce at Agricultural shows. This led to decades of love and dedication to the apiculture industry and currently is the Chief Judge for the Sydney Royal Easter Show, National Honey Show. In 2018 Bruce was named RAS show legend – the highest RAS award.Bruce spent 41 years in NSW DPI retiring as Technical Specialist (Apiculture).Since retiring, Bruce has donated countless hours of running education programs on Biosecurity, Colony Management and Flora. He has also conducted Honey Tutorials to train Honey Judges and was invited as an International Judge to Apimondia in the Ukraine to judge honey. Bruce co-wrote the original Certificate III in Beekeeping and has a Certificate IV in Training and Assessment.

8


KELLY MENADUEKelly Menadue is the Program Manager, Bushfire Recovery, Department of Primary Industries and Regions (PIRSA)The bushfires of the summer of 2019/20 had a significant impact on key South Australian primary production sectors. The collective impact of these fires was directly felt by an estimated 1200 primary production businesses across more than 184,000 hectares. The Department of Primary Industries and Regions (PIRSA) worked closely with impacted industries and communities during the initial response to these fires. Almost 18 months later, this work continues with PIRSA working closely with key industries and communities to identify opportunities to support recovery and build resilience to future events.

TREVOR WEATHERHEAD AMTrevor started keeping honey bees in 1972. He spent time in the Queensland Forestry Department (1967 to 1983), and in the Queensland Department of Primary Industries as an Apiary Officer from 1983 to 1988. In 1988 he started a partnership with his wife Marion, breeding queen bees for the domestic and overseas markets, plus honey production until the business was sold in 2012.Trevor has been active in the beekeeping industry since joining the Queensland Beekeepers’ Association in 1977.Positions and achievements in the industry have included:• President and Life Member of the

Queensland Beekeepers’ Association (QBA), plus President of the Brisbane Branch of the QBA.

• President and Secretary of the Australian Queen Bee Breeders’ Association.

• Active in securing markets for queen bees overseas in such places as Canada and the USA, when it was open.

• Treasurer of the Federal Council of Australian Apiarists’ Association.

HELEN GOODALLHelen comes to AHBIC with over fifteen years experience within the not for profit sector, holding senior management and executive level positions. She began her career working for the ANZ Bank, followed by roles in finance and program management.Helen is a strong business development professional with a Masters degree focused in Business from the University of NSW (UNSW). She also holds a Graduate Certificate of Management from UNSW and is a member of Women on Boards.Being enthusiastic about making a difference and with a common sense and hard work approach, Helen is keen to enhance and build on the work of AHBIC for the benefit of the honey bee industry.

LINDSAY BOURKELindsay Bourke is the ‘face’ of Tasmania’s valuable honey industry, highly regarded as both a world class producer and industry leader. Also a successful businessman with an extensive property portfolio, including hotels, he has served on high powered boards.Lindsay’s passion for beekeeping was sparked during his early 20’s, and today he is the proud owner of Australia’s largest, and most technologically advanced, honey extraction plant which is located at Sheffield. His company, Australian Honey Products, now boasts more than 4,000 hives, and is also the country’s largest multi-variety crop pollinator.Internationally recognised with accolades at the honey industry’s premier event, Lindsay’s leatherwood honey was named world’s best at APIMONDIA South Korea in 2015, and in 2017 his honey mead won world’s best at APIMONDIA Turkey.

Speakers

9

DR DIANA LEEMONDr Diana Leemon recently retired from the Qld Department of Agriculture and Fisheries where she was a research scientist specialising in the biological control of agricultural pests for 21 years. During that time Diana led three AgriFutures Australia (formerly RIRDC) funded projects investigating the control of Small Hive Beetle. Diana now acts as an advisor to a number of research projects involving both honeybee pests and diseases and the biological control of agricultural pests. She is also serving her second term as a member of the AgriFutures Australia Honey Bee and Pollination industry advisory panel.

ELIZABETH FROSTElizabeth Frost is the Technical Specialist Honey Bees with the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries.In this role, Liz manages research and development projects with outcomes for the NSW Beekeeping Industry focusing on queen bee breeding and pollination. She also provides technical advice to the beekeeping industry, government, media and the public, and contributes to the delivery of accredited courses through the registered training organisation – Tocal Agricultural College in the specialist areas of queen bee breeding and insemination and pollination.

JAMIE AYTONJamie joined NSW Department of Primary Industries (NSW DPI) in 1995. He completed a Masters Degree at the University of Western Sydney in 2006. The main focus of his thesis was investigating the effects of irrigation and harvest timing on olive oil quality.Jamie is a member of the NSW DPI team which currently holds accreditation from the International Olive Council (IOC) and is an Approved Chemist with the American Oil Chemists’ Society (AOCS). He completed a comprehensive literature review on the chemistry of honey for the Australian Honey Industry in 2018. He is also a member of the technical committees for Standards Australia, Codex Alimentarius, US Pharmacopeia and the Australian Oil Seeds Federation.

DEIDRE JAENSCHDeidre is the Industry Development Manager - Almond Board of Australia.Deidre joined the ABA in October 2019 as Industry Development manager. She holds a Bachelor of Agricultural Science and has worked in irrigated horticulture within the government, industry and private sectors for over 28 years. Deidre manages the research and development program working with growers, researchers, suppliers and service providers and industry collaborators to enhance industry’s competitiveness and further development in line with the almond industry strategic plan.

DON MUIRDon Muir is a Director of B-QUAL Australia. He is also the Project Manager for the Australian Honey Library Project which is being delivered in collaboration with Dr Liz Barbour (CRCHBP), Professor Sharon Purchase (University of Western Australia) and a team of exceptional researchers.Don is a member of the GS1 Traceability Steering Committee and a Reference Group member of the Hort Innovation Project PH17001. He is also a member of the Victorian Apiarists’ Association Constitutional Committee.

10


HELEN SMITHSince joining Rural Solutions last year, Helen has led teams in developing engagement strategies across a number of projects. With consulting experience in the private sector, she supports colleagues in building partnerships and collaborative solutions. The Pollination project has been an opportunity to explore a range of issues and challenges currently facing the industry sector.

CLAIRE DENNERLEYClaire is a sustainable agriculture professional working across South Australia. She is passionate about South Australian producers realising their highest value in a progressive industry. Claire has diversified her project delivery experience to include soil, pastures, livestock, dung beetles, cropping, seed production, markets and now bees.

BONNIE ARMOURBonnie started with PIRSA in June 2020 as a Graduate Sustainable Agriculture Consultant, based in Nuriootpa. She has worked across the board on hot topics such as carbon farming, regenerative agriculture, soil acidity, soil erosion and pollination. Having a couple of hives herself and growing up in a family of apiarists, sparked her love for the practice and so working with Claire and Helen as well as the apiary industry has been an absolute thrill. She hopes to continue to work in this area and see it flourish and thrive.

DR JAMIE ELLISJamie Ellis is the Gahan Endowed Professor of Entomology in the Department of Entomology and Nematology at the University of Florida. He has a BS degree in Biology from the University of Georgia (USA) and a PhD in Entomology from Rhodes University in South Africa. At the University of Florida, Jamie has responsibilities in Extension, instruction, and research.Regarding his Extension work, Jamie created the UF/IFAS Bee College and the UF/IFAS Master Beekeeper Program. As an instructor, Jamie supervises PhD and Masters’ students. Currently, Jamie and his team have over 30 active research projects in the fields of honey bee husbandry, conservation and ecology, and integrated crop pollination.

DR NADINE CHAPMANDr Nadine Chapman is a researcher at the University of Sydney with a primary focus on applied research of interest to the Australian beekeeping industry. Currently Nadine is working on the Plan Bee National Honey Bee Genetic Improvement Program and she volunteers for the extensionAUS Professional Beekeepers’ Community of Practice. Nadine is passionate about bees and the beekeeping industry and communicating the latest research on matters of importance or interest to beekeepers.Nadine has worked on industry-funded projects, including creating a genetic test for Africanized killer bees, investigating queen mating quality and working on a trap to catch queens. The killer bee test resulted in a CSIRO Biosecurity Flagship Science and Innovation.

11

Speakers

BRENTON DAVISBrenton Davis grew up on the family farm on Kangaroo Island and helped his father, Peter, with the beekeeping and honey extraction that supplemented their mixed farming enterprise.A fulltime beekeeper from 2001 - 2010, Brenton then concentrated on growing the adventure tourism business of Kangaroo Island Outdoor Action (KIOA) which he had purchased just prior to the 2007 fires on Kangaroo Island.Following the bushfires of 2020, Peter Davis decided it was time to retire and Brenton and Verity agreed to purchase Island Beehive.Island Beehive currently manages around 750 hives and operates an extraction facility and retail outlet on Kangaroo Island.

KEVIN TRACYKevin Tracy has worked across a range of beekeeping practices, including honey production and selling, pollination of crops, and Queen bee production and breeding. He holds a Certificate III in Beekeeping, Certificate IV in Training and Assessment and is a member of the SAAA, QBA, NSWAA, AQBBA and ABA. Kevin has also invested time working with Trainees entering commercial beekeeping. Kevin has recently resigned from working at Tocal College, NSW, where he has been a Lead Trainer/Educator in the Certificate III in Beekeeping .In the near future, Kevin will be moving to Queensland where he will be working with Foundation Training Australia (FTA) as the trainer for the Certificate III in Beekeeping. He also intends to work privately on a more advanced training course focusing on Queen bee breeding and production.

DR MADLEN KRATZMadlen’s background is in research on honey bee nutrition, foraging behaviour and pollination. During her PhD she studied the effects of nutrition on colony health and crop pollination efficiency. Since last year, she joined the Department of Primary Industries in NSW at the Tocal Agriculture Centre. In her role as the Honey Bee Industry Development Officer she is focusing on applied research to improve the productivity, profitability and sustainability of the beekeeping industry. She is currently conducting research on the palatability and utilisation of protein supplements, and on honey bee pollination of blueberries grown under protective covers.

MICHAEL STEDMANMichael Stedman is the Program Coordinator - Apiaries for the Department of Primary Industries and Regions (PIRSA). In line with PIRSA’s strategic objectives to prepare for, prevent where possible and respond to emergency events and the long-term risks that threaten South Australia’s primary industries and regional communities, his role within the Apiary Unit includes working with government, the honeybee industry and allied industries, and the public across a range of industry programs and issues. Some specific roles include managing and implementing the SA components of the National Bee Biosecurity Program and the National Bee Pest Surveillance Program, developing policy, providing extension and advice, improving industry biosecurity, and auditing compliance.

SILVER

BRONZE

12

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORSThe SAAA would like to thank all the businesses and organisations acknowledged below for their generous support of the 2021 SAAA Conference and Post-Conference Field Day.


AMETHYST

SUPPORTING

PLATINUM

GOLD

Special thanks to Inside Out Print and Signage for the printing of this Conference Program.

Documents

2021 CONFERENCE PROGRAM